Design Problem Areas. In a perfect restaurant, there would be so such thing as a bad table. However, few restaurants can escape having at least one problem area in their dining room. Common restaurant problem areas- places that customers don’t usually want to sit- include tables near the kitchen entrance, restrooms and front entrance. Tables smack in the middle of the dining room are not always popular with dining patrons either.

Heating and Ventilation. An important (and expensive) consideration for any restaurant, either new or existing, is heating and cooling. Restaurant kitchens put out a lot of heat and smells and smoke. Make sure that your commercial range has proper ventilation, with the right kind of hood and fans.

Restrooms. Design and ambiance carry through to restaurant restrooms. Restrooms should be checked at least once at the start of every shift (preferably more often if it is busy). A hostess or bus person can be assigned the task of refilling paper products and taking out the trash.

Balancing Seating Capacity. The design of a restaurant should be a balance between a welcoming ambiance and maximum seating capacity. In other words, you want to pack in enough customers to keep busy and turn a profit, while at the same time making guests feel comfortable. Some types of restaurants focus on seating capacity rather than interior design. Diners, for example, have more seating capacity while fine dining restaurants tend to focus more on ambiance.